I brought in my XF for service to have a few items checked out, including brake squeal. My service advisor, who's always been very good, let me know that the vehicle needs all the brake pads replaced, even though it only has 11K miles (I average 6-7K miles of local driving a year). I expressed obvious surprise, but he reported seeing brake pads needing replacement every 10K miles regularly on the XF, which seems like a third the reasonable life expectancy for this class of vehicle.

I checked out the various Jaguar forums, and saw that this is indeed a widespread issue, with some customers reporting that Jaguar was willing to cover their replacement cost as a warranty item. I've contacted Jaguar CR by email (too late to phone), but was wondering if anyone had direct experience with premature brake pad wear, and might offer advice on having the replacement covered under warranty (i.e. who to contact at Jaguar CR).

This is my first foray into Jaguar ownership, and to date it has been a very promising one, but if Jaguar considers brake pad replacement every 10K a reasonable standard, this XF will be my last.

Thanks in advance for any help you can offer!

 

32,000 km (20,000 miles) and plenty of pad left. There have been reports of premature pad wear, especially the rear pads and Jaguar doesn't want to accept responsibility.

If the rears are wearing prematurely the EPB might be seizing.

There are suspicions that excessive activation of the traction or stability control may be responsible.

If all four sets of pads are wearing in similar fashion it will likely be attributed to driving style or traffic.

 

An age old problem between consumers and manufacturers. Many cover brake pads against wear-out for 12months/12000 miles. Some go longer...I recall that GM went 36/36 a few years ago...due to increasing consumer anger over paying for pad replacement at 10-15-20k miles.

Some manufacturers make exceptions and cover pads on a "case-by-case goodwill basis". Sometimes the dealer is permitted to make such "goodwill" decisions on the spot. Not sure what Jaguar's policy is.

Of course if there's a system defect *causing* the wear-out then the pads should be covered as a secondary result of the primary fault.

If this is a common problem then there's either a widespread defect in the systems or the brakes/brake pads are a poor design. The warranty covers defects, not poor design....if you get the distinction :-)

Some cars are notorious "pad eaters". I remember, for one example, that some 70s-80s vintage Hondas went thru pads like nobodies business. Honda shrugged it off...."That's just the way they are". There have been many others over the years, all with owners going "grrrrrr", quite understandably.

Good luck

Cheers
DD

 

Many high performance imports have very soft brake pads and very soft tires. My Lexus owners manual warned me on the brake pads. The pads are expected to last 15K miles, and the tires maybe 20K miles.

I attribute these parts to a war for road test statistics in the car magazines. Everyone wants the shortest stopping distances and highest G lateral force. This does no good for customers' pocketbooks, however.

I made the mistake on my Lexus to not change the brake pads until I heard the first little squeal. Too late, all 4 rotors had a deep groove and all rotors will have to be replaced on the second brake job.

You might want to just suck it up and change the pads with non-OEM parts. There are many great aftermarket pads on the market. Hopefully your rotors are okay.

FYI: Modern Jaguar brakes are very easy to work on, and completely conventional brakes. Any ole mechanic can handle a brake job on a Jag.

 

It does make you wonder. On the 2011 XF brake pad replacement is covered under the Platinum coverage. I wonder if this is a reaction to complaints regarding the short life span? Or perhaps they have gone to a longer lasting pad so they don't need to be replaced as often?

Jaguar Platinum Coverage offers best-in-class coverage for all new 2011 Jaguar cars. For 5 years or 50,000 miles, you will enjoy the exhilarating luxury of our 2011 cars, with complimentary scheduled maintenance, no-cost replacement of wear and tear items, 5/50 new vehicle limited warranty, and 24/7 roadside assistance.

Scheduled Maintenance: $0
Oil Changes: $0
Filters: $0
Brake Pads: $0
Brake Discs: $0
Brake Fluid: $0
Wiper Blade Inserts: $0

 

^^^^ bill, thats in response to other manufacturers "no cost maintenance" programs. At this point in time jaguar's is the best on time and mileage over others. The down side is that all parts have to be at or below replacment thickness. Which meens you can come in for service today and then the pad wear light goes off next week. Youll have to come back. Where i would recommend pads now while youre here to save time and return visits. Jaguar wont warranty any parts replaced prematurely. Theres a down side to everything in life isnt there

 

It is normal these days to replace the rotors every second pad change. The pad material is harder and wears the rotors more quickly. Turning rotors is usually pointless, put new ones on.

 

I have 16000 miles on my car and the pads are just fine. I do tend to use the paddles to downshift while slowing down which might make a difference.

 

I had an Acura nsx that went through rear tires every 5k miles and this was normal!!! That being said 11k and needing new pads is a bit silly.

 

Are changing pads and rotors every 20k normal? My use is primarily highway. Anyone find better after market parts?

 

Please remember that your Service Advisor is a commissioned salesman, and I wouldn't be too fast to have trust in what they say. They are not your best friend.

Take it from someone that had 25 years' as an auto manufacturer employee--get a second opinion on general maintenance issues--preferably at a good, quality independent auto repair shop.

The only reason I ever take any repairs to a franchised auto dealer is:
(1) The factory is paying the bill.
(2) The repair is beyond my mechanical capabilities to fix.

I know there are some good, honorable Service Advisors out there. I just don't happen to know many--out of the 400+ auto dealers I've worked with living in 4 different regions.

 

Just traded my '09 XF with 91K miles. I did brakes, pads and rotors, at 50K and 90K. I drive 140 miles weekdays and a 600 miles weekend once a month to Dallas. I would have to guess that the kind of driving you're doing determines the brake wear.

 

I have an XFR, and I replaced the pads and rotors at approximately 22,000 miles under warranty due to a separate issue. When they replaced the pads and rotors, they assured me that I still have some pad thickness left .

I truly drive my car, and if you are experiencing worn pads at 11,000 miles, I am somewhat skeptical as to what is going on. *You must either ride the brakes hard, or there's still a decent amount of thickness on the pad. Here's a question: is your brake pads light coming on? If not, then it hasn't hit the sensor, and I am unsure as to why you need to replace your pads right now.

Also, is your brake squeal coming on when you brake or is it when you are moving without applying the brake pedal? This is a weird question, but this is an issue that I have to deal with. Another question is: does squealing sound like brakes that may need an adjustment, or does it sound like actual grinding? Clearly, if it sounds like grinding you will have to replace the pads.

I would probably take the car to another dealer for their evaluation.

 

It does not seem to be widely known , certainly this post does not seem to mention it much , (Brutal excepted), that the car can put the brakes on as well as the driver with these modern Jaguars, (and lots of other makes of car for that matter). Limited slip diffs are no more, so when a rear wheel starts spinning the traction control uses the brakes to stop it spinning. Stability control also applies the brakes during cornering when it second-guesses the sanity of he driver attempting certain manoevres.

So...........

With the large and powerful engines in modern Jaguars, and their superb roadability and clever systems to stop drivers putting them into the ditch, I am not surprised the brakes wear out quickly.

 

It's the four brakes needing doing at the same time that is suspicious. It is very rare for the front pads to last as long as the rear pads.

Ask your service guy to give you the actual measurements of pad thickness and rotor thickness and the Jaguar specifications.

 

Definitely a problem with brakes. Had to change the rear rotors and pads at 30,000 Km and 50,000 KM. Front still ok. Usually front brakes would go first. Dealer is saying this is normal. I can't believe this!!!

 

My 2010 XF SC was 2 years old when I bought it. When I looked at the carfax it says 'front and rear brake rotors replaced at 5000 miles'. Then rear brake pads and rotors replaced (again!) at 12,000 miles. It has now done nearly 30,000 miles and there is plenty of pad left. So I'm guessing hard driving style could perhaps make a big difference here, wearing down the soft pads (and perhaps warping the rotors too...)

 

These cars go through rotors and pads like nothing. They do have good stopping power, best in it's segment. And, 60-0 in 106ft, which is same as Maserati Grand turismo. Not bad for a 4 door sedan.

Mine were replaced at 4700 miles on my '12 and i am ready for the 3rd set at 30,000.

 

Welcome to the forum Clem-R,

Even though this thread is over two years old, the issue will never go away nor will manufacturer's warranty position change.

When you get a minute, please follow this link New Member Area - Intro a MUST - Jaguar Forums - Jaguar Enthusiasts Forum to the New Member Area - Intro a MUST forum and post some info about yourself and your vehicle for all members to see.

In return you'll get a proper welcome and some useful advice about posting to the forum.

Graham

 

Agreed, driving style...and driving conditions....make a difference.

The Akebono pads on my XJR have over 100k miles and there's still life left in them. Many would find this unbelievable....until I mention that 80% of my mileage is accumulated by highway driving with near-zero traffic. Then it makes a lot more sense.

On the other extreme.....

For many years (and perhaps to this day) Subaru sold RHD cars in the USA that were very popular with rural mail carriers. The dealer I worked for sold and serviced dozens of 'em. Brake pad replacement ever 3000-4000 miles was the norm, and you can easily imagine why: Eight hours a day, six days a week of constant stop-n-go, stop-n-go....mailbox to mailbox.

Anyhow.....

Sometimes it's hard to distinguish determine what's repairable defect versus what's an inherent (but perhaps unfortunate) design/engineering characteristic. The NSX tires mentioned above are one example. Ages ago Hondas were notorious for short brake life. Jaguars are known for short suspension bushing life. As a group I'm sure we can come up with many more examples.

Cheers
DD